


The time in-between

by ONeillwith2ls



Series: What the cameras didn't see [3]
Category: Stargate SG-1
Genre: Between and behind the scenes, F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-17
Updated: 2021-03-24
Packaged: 2021-03-26 16:54:05
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,005
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30109077
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ONeillwith2ls/pseuds/ONeillwith2ls
Summary: It seemed to me there was always a huge time gap between seasons 8 and 9, think about it the SGC gets a new boss Jack is moved up Sam moves away, Daniel is busy with Atlantis stuff Teal’c is off with the Jaffa, Cameron arrives... there's a lot and it's never explained... Well here's to trying!
Relationships: Samantha "Sam" Carter/Jack O'Neill
Series: What the cameras didn't see [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2174256
Comments: 36
Kudos: 51





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is the follow up to my Unravel story. Might be worth reading it so you know what's going on!

Three Weeks Later

"If I'm running late, what are you again?" Sam asked, her mobile phone stuck to her ear as she was trying to get dressed. She shook her head when she realized she needed to refresh her wardrobe since most of her clothes were suitable for the weather of Colorado Springs instead of a desert environment where Area 51 was situated. She sighed at task, knowing that her free time was limited. She only really enjoyed shopping when she wanted to shop, not when she had to shop.

"In charge." He told her, with a smirk on his face, before the cockiness turned to concern. "Are you okay? You're never late."

"Well, there's you late," she said, slightly annoyed with the one button not laying right on her chest which made her question her entire ensemble. 'Maybe a t-shirt would do the trick?' She thought to herself. "There's Daniel late.“ she continued. "And there's me late." She quipped. "Anyway, I was there late last night preparing for a meeting."

"I thought you promised me no overtime until you were settled in, Colonel."

"Don't go pulling rank on me now. I'll get there on time. I just hate being just on time and might as well be late." She muttered.

"Sam-- relax. You're in charge of your own team now. Have them wait for you. It's one of the few pleasures you'll have." He told her.

"Seriously? Why are you so chipper?" She asked him as she left her bedroom and went to her small kitchen. "Are you even at work?"

"Sitting at my desk in the SGC. Got here an hour ago." He boasted.

"Show off." She muttered, pouring her tea into a flask.

"If it's any help, I still have no clue who to put in the chair here." Jack pouted.

"You hate that chair." Sam observed.

"Yeah." He sighed again and put the files down again on his desk. "Carter, can't I just make you a General already. We all know you'll be running the gig one day."

"That's very flattering, but you know I don't have enough command experience." She said, heading for the door but stopping to look for her keys.

"Oh, that." Jack sighed. "Really though, Carter. I have no idea who to assign. There's no one in the program with this kind of experience."

"Jack, _we_ didn't have that sort of experience." She reminded him.

"What do you mean?" He asked.

"Well, if there's no one in Stargate Command you can put in charge, maybe bring in someone outside would be better." She told him as he listened closer. "You must have some old buddies who are well trained and could handle the SGC. It's already so much bigger it was even four years ago." She suggested looking for her keys.

"Hmmm. Someone from the outside." He mused, reflectively.

"There was once upon a time you thought of me as an outsider." She teased him, smiling to herself as she finally found them.

"Well, that's because I didn't know you yet." He defended.

"I'm just saying it's worth considering." She told him logically, as she opened her front door and left the house.

He nodded. "An outsider."

"Okay, I have to go." She admitted as she finally got in her car, placed her flask in the cup holder, as she settled comfortably in the seat before starting the car.

"What are you doing today?" He asked her.

"I've got a meeting with two department heads, one with the sublight engines and one on the development of a weapon like the one we used for super solider, not that they are likely to turn up again but we're dealing with enemies we couldn't even imagine not that long ago."

"Yeah." Jack nodded slowly even though Sam couldn’t see him over the phone. "You haven't forgotten our meeting, have you?"

"Friday morning here in the conference room, speaking of which--" she said starting her engine to drive the short distance up to Groom Lake, "that will be finished by four, won't t?”

"Easily." He confirmed. "Why? Is everything okay?"

"Just an appointment I have to keep. Nothing to worry about-- Oh! And Cassie wants to know if you'll stay the weekend. Something to do with a dollar breakfast in a casino?"

Jack laughed. "She's getting settled into student life okay, I see. Tell her I wouldn't miss it for the world. and neither are you."

"We'll see." Sam smiled.

"Yeah, we will."

"Alright, I have to go. I love you."

"I love you, Carter."

* * *

"Colonel Carter, Ma'am." The young Lieutenant snapped to attention as Sam walked in the Lieutenant's lab.

"Lieutenant Anderson, I'm only going to say this once," she said with a grin on her face, quoting what Jack said to her all those years ago, "at ease."

"Yes Ma'am, sorry ma'am, it’s just -- Major Fisher--" Jess Anderson nervously tried to answer.

"Is a jackass, Jess." Sam finished, rolling her eyes before she scoffed. "You know he actually told me he thought he should have gotten this post."

"But he's had no command experience?" Anderson protested.

"You remember that day I got stuck on the Prometheus with the reporters and everyone was called to ground base--"

She giggled. "Ma’am, I'm sorry but that was barely six hours."

"Apparently six hours adds up to seven years of being trained by possible the best strategical thinkers ever, and a year in command of a unit because 'Let's face it, SG-1 was a civilian unit and a breeze to do'."

Jess's jaw literally dropped. "He didn’t?!"

"Oh, he did!" Sam laughed.

"If I were you, I'd be giving him the graveyard twenty-four seven as payback."

"Hmmm," Sam gave thought to it. The 'graveyard' was nicknamed so, because of the 'dead' pieces of alien technology stored there. No one actually knew if they really didn't work anymore or were just inactive. Rumours of phantom sounds and lights gave myth to a few base hauntings. "You know me. I wouldn't abuse my power like that." She said with a blank look on her face, even Jack would be proud to see.

"A-are--" Jess asked.

"Not serious." Sam laughed. "I keep forgetting you guys don't know me all that well." She sat a little straighter and smiled. "Maybe I should start team night here." She suggested more to herself then Jess. "So how are you doing with slimer?" Sam asked.

"I can't believe you named it." Jess laughed.

"It seems aware of us. I don't see how we couldn’t. The question is how intelligent."

"We've detected no brainwave activities. There's no solid structure to it, only slime."

"Yet when two people are in a room together longer than ten minutes they can telepathically communicate, no matter how large or small the sample." She paused for a moment. “Did I ever tell you about SG-1’s visit to Russia when they were operating the second gate on Earth? We took a sub through to a water planet and discovered that the water was actually a form of civilization.” She almost laughed at Anderson’s look of shock. “So, it may look like slime but who knows what else it could be.”

"That sounds amazing. We do know that anything preventing visual contact stops it from working altogether." She sighed. "Thank God." She muttered where Sam looked up and laughed.

"Doctor Matherson?" Sam smiled.

"Ohh, ummm--"

"You should go for it. He's cute."

"He's thirty. I'm only twenty-three."

"Please!" Sam said then without thinking carried on. "That's nothing compared to me and my husband." Sam froze, realizing what she just said.

"You're married, Ma'am?" She asked. "But your file--"

"It's recent. Very recent." She said with a nervous smile.

"How many years’ difference?" Jess asked.

Sam grinned. "He's sixteen years older than me."

"Older man, huh?" Jess asked. "So, what is he? Tall, dark, and mysterious?"

"He's--" Sam smiled, her heart pounding at the very thought of him. "-- Amazing, just amazing." She admitted. "But you should make sure you have a life away from here with someone who can understand. It's important. Doctor Matherson might be able to assist in it."

"And you, Ma'am?" Jess asked. "Did your husband come with you?"

"No," she said shaking her head as she deliberately chose her next words. "No, his job keeps him -- elsewhere, everywhere, but we've worked out a schedule which should mean we get to see each other plenty."

"That doesn't seem fair, ma'am."

Sam shrugged. "The physical distance is hard but at least we're emotionally expressing ourselves. It’s nothing we can’t handle."

"Are you afraid, ma'am? That the long-distance thing might not work?" Jess wondered, her voice soft, hoping that she was not being too intrusive.

"We've endured much more than distance keeping us apart and we came out stronger." Sam said. "So, if Doctor Matherson loves you, you might want to give it a chance." Sam took a deep breath. "Anyway, I think we're both going to be affected by slimer soon, so let's move."

"Yes Ma'am."


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The best things come on Thursday Nights

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you Thank you Thank you! Your lovely comments! Feel free to add more 😏😉

It was Thursday night approaching 2230 and she was exhausted. She had tried to pack as much as possible into her day, simply so come Friday evening and after the fake formality of "yes sir" and "Carter" were over for the day, she could fall into her husband’s arms for the whole weekend (alright almost all weekend) without a care in the world!

She had opted for a small house which was technically part of the base where most of the people there chose to live. She didn't mind not having a huge space while she was on base. She had what she needed, a decent sized double bed to rest her head on, room for a set of drawers, a bathroom with a bath and shower, and a tiny living area which housed a small kitchen and a small sofa. 

You couldn't accidently fall upon the base, although many claimed to. No GPS would take you there. There were no landings to the airport. So if you were on the base, you were meant to be there! Even off base restaurants, bars and shopping were well over an hour’s drive away. That being said, she'd already driven up to Las Vegas a few times to have breakfast with Cassie before her classes started for the day in the UNLV medical sciences school. 

Luckily, the base also housed a good Chinese takeaway and pizza place, both which were O'Neill approved. Another good thing about the location of the small house was that her closest neighbours were currently away for two weeks so no one would know of the General’s visit. 

So, when she pulled up to the tiny bungalow, it was obvious someone else was there. She frowned for a moment before the door opened and there he stood. She smiled widely before she took off her seatbelt, opened her car door and got out, hastily closing the car door behind her before she started to run towards his open arms.

"What have I told you about working so late?" He scolded her as she fell against him, feeling all her fatigue fade away.

"Reprimand later, sex now!" She said, finally pulling back from his embrace so she could kiss him passionately. He enthusiastically complied, lifting her in his arms, swinging her round, his foot shutting the door behind them. 

"You got here early?" She breathed her words between kisses. She looked around briefly and saw he had ordered in food which lay on the small coffee table. "You ordered dinner?"

"Just pizza. It'll be fine cold." He rushed his words before he told her. "Couldn't wait another day." One hand hoisted her t-shirt up and slipping under her bra in one sweeping movement as his other hand cupped round her ass. 

"Mmmm, ohhhhh!" She groaned as he kissed round her neck. "God! That feels good!" She mumbled in delight as she pressed herself against him, relishing in their closeness. "Two weeks. Far too long!"

"Never ever. Not that long again." He nodded, his fingers undoing her bra.

"Yes sir!" She said enthusiastically which made him growl. She giggled at him before he swept her into his arms and carried her to the bedroom. 

* * *

"Okay, pizza is definitely the best sex food." Jack proclaimed, finishing off a slice of the pizza. He hadn't bothered putting on any clothes when he went through to the living room and bringing the pizza back so they could eat without leaving the bedroom. Sam had opted for her bottled water whereas Jack had chosen the faithful beer to drink. She giggled at him, something about Jack O’Neill being in her bed, stark naked, eating pizza and pointing it out, just made her extremely happy. "Oh, I'm completely serious. Think about it." He told Sam, picking up another slice. "Plenty of carbs to keep you going--"

"Not that we have any problems with that!"

Jack smiled and winked at her. "Thanks. You got vegetables in the tomatoes--"

"Which are really a fruit."

"And cheese, so you're good on your calcium." He continued.

"Not the best source of calcium in the world." She giggled.

"And no crumbs. There are no crumbs in the bed." He finished with a flourish.

"I love how all of that was almost all true." She grinned.

"What could possibly go wrong with this?" He asked her.

"If we ate it hot and the cheese slid off." She pointed out.

"Ouch!" He cringed as he took another bite of his slice. "That would leave a nasty burn."

"At least it would be fresh." She said, putting down her slice, frowning at it as if something was not quite right with her pizza.

"Oh? Not good cold?" He asked.

"I'm not sure how you're eating it." She told him, taking a sip of her water.

"Too many years of those ration packs, burns your taste buds right off." He joked.

She grinned before she nodded in agreement. "Yeah." She said before she yawned.

"Look at you, you're exhausted!" He told her, putting down his pizza and the pizza box tossing it on the floor next to them.

"First couple of weeks and I’m still settling in." She told him as they settled back, she found herself wrapped in his arms and had no will not want not to be. "I have an asshole Major who thinks he should have got my post. A Lieutenant who is too shy and quiet, it's like she's afraid of her own shadow." Sam sighed. "Then every other person in command of a team reports to me--" she sighed. "No wonder you used to come and nap in my lab." 

"The weight of command." He grinned, kissing into her hair. "Sleep, Carter." He told her as they settled down in bed. "You got me to take care of you."

"Safest place in the world." She barely murmured before she fell asleep, wrapped safely in Jack’s arms.

* * *

Jack woke with a start, his arm instinctively reaching for Sam, but realized she wasn't to be found safe in the bed beside him. He raised his head off his pillow, tilting it to one side as he became aware of the sound which had woken him quiet so suddenly.

The sound of Sam retching in the bathroom was on the periphery of his hearing. He looked at the clock and saw it was 0400, so crawled out of bed and joined her on the bathroom floor, gently rubbing her back.

"I didn't mean to wake you." She managed breathlessly before she continued to be sick into the toilet bowl.

"That pizza really isn't good cold." He said to her concerned.

"It was laying on my stomach really heavily." She admitted.

"I'll cancel our meeting." He told her and she shook her head. "No?" He asked her. "Sam, you're sick."

"It's just the pizza I swear." She told him. She told him sitting back and flushing the chain. "Trust me." She told him standing and then helping him up. "I'm a doctor remember." She told him.

He wrapped his arm around and shook his head. "Wrong kind of doctor, remember? And isn't there something about doctors not self diagnosing?" He said, slipping her back into bed and rearranged her blankets around her.

"I have more going on than just our meeting. I'm fine." She told him as he got into bed and wrapped his arm around her so she can cuddle closer to him. "Really!"

"Let’s just get some more sleep." He whispered, snuggling into her back.

"Sounds good." She admitted. And within minutes, she was sound asleep. Unfortunately, it took Jack a little while longer to get to sleep.

* * *

Sam was sitting on one of the lab benches in the shared lab with the young Lieutenant directly opposite her. Major Fisher sat with his back turned to both of them by choice. The silence was broken when she first heard the voice of the head of Area 51, General Oliver, talking to someone as they came towards their lab space. She looked up just as they entered the room. Anderson immediately jumped off her stool, tripping as she went, and almost hitting her head on the edge of the table. 

"Jess?" Sam stood up and rounded the desk. "Are you alright?"

"Lieutenant Jessica Anderson, sir!" She snapped to attention, not hearing Sam’s question.

"Agh! Carter!" He complained.

"Jess, it's okay at ease." Sam said, concerned for her. "The General appreciates the gesture but really… relax." 

"And, of course, you know Colonel Carter here, sir." General Oliver smiled.

"Carter." Jack greeted her as if they hadn’t seen each other in a while.

"It's good to see you, sir." She greeted him with a smile.

"You know this General?" Jess whispered to her.

"General Jack O’Neill?" Sam asked the young Lieutenant.

The girl’s eyes went wide, and her jaw dropped. "SG-1 lead for eight years --Th-- _ that _ General O’Neill?" She asked, awe in her voice, as her eyes darted back and forth between Sam and the General. 

Jack looked straight at the girl, his expression deadly deadpan serious. He tried not to look too intimidating towards the young lieutenant, especially since he knew Sam was very fond of this one.

"Sir." Sam said, a smile playing round her lips. "You're making her nervous."

"Oh, at ease, Lieutenant. I once knew a young captain who would jump out of her seat like a nervous wreck every time I walked into a room and now look at her." He said with a grin to Carter. "Was wondering if you'd like to grab a coffee before our meeting, Carter?"

She fought to bite back the grin. "Yes, sir. I'd like that. Let me grab my things."

"So, this is your new shindig?" He asked her, casually looking around the lab. 

"Part of it, yes sir." She nodded, smiling to herself. To someone who didn’t know Jack, they wouldn’t have realized that in that one sweep around the lab he knew exactly what was in this room. "This is the team lab." Sam pointed out to him.

"You said something in your report about a slimer?" He asked her, knowing full well she never named it that in her report, but had referred to it like that in private.

"You can't write that in a report, can you?" Jess whispered to her.

Sam smiled at the young Lieutenant and shook her head. "He's made a deduction from my descriptions." She smiled then looked at Jack. "We had to move it out of the lab. As long as no one is in the same room as it, the effects don't take hold. We've put it in storage for a bio team to take a look at it."

"Shame. I'd love to know what was going on inside your head sometimes." He grinned as she gave an incredulous look to him. "General Oliver, I'm in good hands. I'll get Carter to drop me back to you in a couple of hours. Let me see what my former second is up to here."

"Yes, sir." The Brigadier General nodded, knowing he’s been dismissed and walked out the room.

"So--" he said to her, with a grin on his face. "Your team." He said, looking at the other two people in the room.

"Yes sir, Major Fisher, General O’Neill."

The younger man approached them, and he snapped to attention, his eyes straight forward. "General O’Neill, sir!" He said crisply. "I've heard a lot about you, sir." 

"Yes, well--" Jack said, peering at Sam for a second. "You can't believe it all, son."

"No, sir, it's all good sir." He replied.

"Then you definitely shouldn't believe it." Jack said which made Sam smile so much she bit into her bottom lip to suppress the laugh.

"Sir?" Fisher asked, wondering if he had done something wrong.

"Carter?" He snapped at her. "Have you been lying about me?"

"Me, sir? No sir, never." She said, carefully trying to suppress her smile.

"Ummm, come on, there’s something we need to discuss before our meeting at 1100."

"Yes, sir." Sam nodded. "Lieutenant, continue with the power output," she instructed her, before turning to Fisher. “And Major, see how much heat is being put into that. I don't want another one blowing up on us." Sam instructed. 

"Yes Ma'am." They said in unison. 

"I'll drop these in my office." Sam nodded, indicating to her clipboard and reports before walking out of the lab to her office with Jack by her side. They got stopped a couple of times by junior staff who both needed for her signature to sign off on work as they walked along.

They entered her office and it made him smile. There on a countertop was some doohickey he recognized that once decorated Sam’s SGC office. It was a couple of years ago when Sam had reluctantly let it go to Area 51 on the promise they would study it. Apparently, they never did so Sam took it back. 

"What do you think?" She asked as she closed the door behind them to give them a small semblance of privacy.

"Got to say, Carter, I'm impressed." He said quietly a grin which was only showing in his eyes. "You've settled in well." He told her, pride in his voice.

"Thank you, sir. I'm still getting the hang of it. It's different from the SGC." She admitted, subconsciously showing Jack her apprehension about her move.

"Little homesick?" He asked her, picking up a doohickey he hoped wasn’t dangerous.

"Ah, well, no, not yet anyway." She told him, as she retrieved it from him and placed it back on the counter. 

"Talking of sick--" He said, concern evident in his voice. "You were still sleeping soundly when I left this morning."

"I'll admit I was tired, and the pizza did lie on my stomach for a while, but I am feeling better now." She assured him.

"You sure?" He stepped closer to her, keeping his back to the camera so no one could see the closeness of the two officers and nothing untoward was being observed as his hand surreptitiously reached out to take her hand.

She smiled as she rubbed her thumb against the back of his hand. "Positive, sir." She assured him.

He nodded before he slowly moved back his hand and stepped away. "Lunch after the meeting?" He asked her.

She nodded. "Of course. Can we skip the coffee? I’m feeling better but I better not chance it.” She gave him a mega-watt smile he readily agreed. 

As they left the room, he turned to her and said. "I hope they have cake."

She smiled. "More likely than my blue Jell-o."

He grinned. "I knew you missed the SGC."

"I miss the blue Jell-O." She clarified. "Any hints about our meeting?” 

“That’s classified.” He told her to which she looked at him funny “Well, it is.”

"Even here, sir?" She questioned, to which he nodded. "Sounds ominous." She said with a grin. 


End file.
